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1.
J Environ Manage ; 286: 112237, 2021 May 15.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-33676130

ABSTRACT

The importance of marinas as infrastructures for recreational boating is increasing substantially. However, information on their soft-bottom benthic communities, a key tool for managing programmes, is still scarce. We combined environment features with macro- and meiofaunal soft-bottom community information for assessing the ecological status of marinas with an integrative approach. To address this issue, we focused on eight marinas of the Southern Iberian Peninsula. Macro- and meiofauna data revealed high benthic heterogeneity at a spatial scale. The environmental variables which correlated best with macrofauna were mainly phosphorus, granulometry, and total organic carbon, and secondarily important variables were faecal coliforms, the biocide Irgarol, and heavy metals; total hydrocarbon concentration was also significant for meiofauna. Annelida was the dominant phylum in terms of number of species (37%) and abundance (66%) and were better descriptors of the environmental conditions than Arthropoda and Mollusca. Although identification to the species level is desirable and mandatory for assessing biological pollution, significant differences among marinas and correlations between fauna and abiotic variables were already detected at the level of family and order. This implies that biota assessment at higher levels may still be useful in monitoring programmes limited by time and budget constraints. The major novelty of this study lies in the development of an integrative assessment method based on the following selected ecological indicators: Marinas Environmental Pollution Index (MEPI), Biocontamination Index (BCI), macrofaunal biotic indices (AMBI, M-AMBI, BENTIX, MEDOCC and BENFES), macrofaunal taxa richness and Shannon-Wiener's diversity, and nematode:copepod index. This approach was able to discriminate marinas of the Southern Iberian Peninsula based on their ecological status, which ranged from poor to good. The method can be useful to design standards for assigning "sustainable quality seals" to those marinas with better values of ecological indicators.


Subject(s)
Ecosystem , Metals, Heavy , Animals , Biodiversity , Biota , Environmental Monitoring , Invertebrates , Metals, Heavy/analysis
2.
Sci Total Environ ; 762: 144169, 2021 Mar 25.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-33360466

ABSTRACT

Despite the growing interest in recreational boating and the increasing number of marinas along the world's coastlines, environmental knowledge of these ecosystems is still very scarce. Detailed data of pollutants in marinas are necessary to provide a global approach of environmental risks in the context of international management strategies. In the present study, a set of 64 variables (30 in seawater and 34 in sediments) were measured to compare marinas from the Southern Iberian Peninsula (SIP). Uni and multivariate analyses showed significant differences among marinas, evidencing the importance of management on a local scale. The most relevant variables determining these differences were turbidity and the biocide Irgarol 1051 in seawater, and granulometry, hydrocarbons and faecal coliforms in sediment. The use of normalization techniques with Al or Fe, and the suitability of different methodologies to measure Total Organic Matter in marinas were also discussed. Additionally, we perform a comprehensive literature review of worldwide marina stressors and develop a simple and straightforward method for assessing environmental quality. The method was tested using SIP marinas and was based on the comparison of 15 selected sediment stressors with background values, concentrations of worldwide sediment quality guidelines (SQGs), and reference conditions/security thresholds established by the programme of coastal waters in port areas (ROM 5.1). A global score was assigned using a new proposed index, Marinas Environmental Pollution Index (MEPI), ranging from 0 to 150 points according to the environmental quality (<90: bad, 90-120: moderate, >120: good). MEPI of marinas from SIP ranged from 60 to 110 points indicating bad or moderate levels of pollution. Environmental quality is one of the decisive factors for awarding eco-labels or eco-certifications, such as Blue Flags in marinas. Therefore, pollution baseline information and environmental tools are mandatory for correct assignation of these awards and necessary for assessing the efficiency of management actions.

3.
Mar Pollut Bull ; 138: 584-597, 2019 Jan.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-30660310

ABSTRACT

The increasing number of anthropogenic areas in the marine environment results in significant impact to adjacent ecosystems. In fact, the presence of marinas modifies the original environmental conditions and ends up disturbing the faunal community. However, despite the essential role displayed by the macrofauna on marinas' fouling biota, certain taxa such as polychaetes have been poorly studied. The present study provides the first spatial characterization of the epibiont polychaete fauna associated with the bryozoan Bugula neritina in marinas along the Iberian Peninsula and the north of Morocco. A total of 32 polychaete species were identified, with Syllidae being the most diverse family. Furthermore, the environmental factors involved in the occurrence and abundance of the dominant species Salvatoria clavata were also analyzed by Generalized Linear Models; results showed that the highest predicted values of S. clavata abundance appeared at marinas with high levels of nutrient enrichment and of heavy metals concentration.


Subject(s)
Polychaeta/physiology , Animals , Biodiversity , Biota , Bryozoa/physiology , Ecosystem , Environmental Monitoring , Linear Models , Morocco , Water Pollutants, Chemical/analysis
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